Nuggets fans have been plenty defensive of Cam Johnson this season, and rightfully so. He came over from one of the worst basketball situations in the league in Brooklyn to a team that’s in perennial championship-or-bust mode. He had to adjust his game on the fly and fit into a very established starting lineup, taking over a role for a player who had held it for six straight seasons.
There were always going to be growing pains with Johnson, but the upside for his potential fit was tantalizing and obvious. He struggled immensely with his shot out of the gate, but just as he was really starting to heat up, he went down with a knee injury just before Christmas, missing almost six weeks.